CODEWITHSUNDEEP
linuxunixubuntufedora
user997112
user997112

Reputation: 30645

Linux kernel/os source code documentation?

Is there a Linux distro (other than Minix) with good documentation for the source code? Or, is there some good documentation to describe the general Linux source code?

I have downloaded the Kernel source code, but, it is (unsurprisingly) a little overwhelming to find my way around and I wondered if there were some higher-level documentation to go with how the Linux kernel works?

Upvotes: 3

Views: 4277

Answers (5)

Hibou57
Hibou57

Reputation: 7190

For something which is not obsolete (like kernel.org/doc is), you may see:

The first is the one I prefer personally (clean, readable, pleasant, up‑to‑date).

The second is the most well known.

The third, is for download, if you wish to browse and search it off‑line (may be handy in some case).

My two cents as a side note before I leave: I feel it's weird how for such a famous stuff as the Linux kernel is, when you search the web for documentation, you get masses of obsolete documentations, and how the rather up‑to‑date ones seems to be rather hidden and far from the top position of search engines.

Upvotes: 0

prathmesh.kallurkar
prathmesh.kallurkar

Reputation: 5696

If you want to learn about operating systems and their basics, I strongly suggest you to start with a small kernel and then ramp up to learn about Linux. Starting with an operating system like Linux would be overwhelming in terms of code and documentation.

There is XV6 operating system which follows the basic Unix notion of files and processes. You can get the code listing and the documentation explaining the code properly. Here is a link to it. link.

Since academia is using this course as a baseline, I think you should get good support for understanding the same.

Upvotes: 1

Lucian Enache
Lucian Enache

Reputation: 2530

Have you tried having a look on The linux documentation project I've find it quietly exhaustive regarding linux They have a section The Linux Kernel wich is an online book that explains how the linux kernel works and why it does behaves in certain ways, you should deffinitely look into it because it's very well made.

Upvotes: 4

Ignacio Vazquez-Abrams
Ignacio Vazquez-Abrams

Reputation: 799300

Linux Core Kernel Commentary is a little dated, but is still an excellent source of info.

Upvotes: 0

Dan Fego
Dan Fego

Reputation: 14034

Some of the Linux kernel code has decent commenting as documentation, but if you're going to be getting into kernel development, I'd recommend picking up a good book. A good, relatively easy-to-read one is Linux Kernel Development, by Robert Love. I got started on the Second Edition when I was in college, and keep a copy of the third on my bookshelf now.

I also find the Linux Cross Reference site helpful in jumping around the kernel source code. It's nice for tracking down functions that are in different files, and getting at what you need.

Upvotes: 3

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